Structural steel tower



April 8, 1941. A. KENDRICK 2,237,955

STRUCTURAL STEEL TOWER Filed March 19, 1958 2 Sheets-Sheet l ATTORNEY.

April 8, 1941. A. KENDRICK STRUCTURAL STEEL TOWER 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed March 19, 1938 INVENTOR.

ATTORNEY.

Patented Apr. 8, 1941 2,237,965 STRUCTURAL STEEL TOWER Arthur Kendrick, Dallas, Tex., assignor of onehalf to Dec E. Humphrey, Dallas, Tex.

Application March 19, 1938, Serial No. 196,849

1 Claim.

This invention relates to derricks, and it has particular reference to the construction and fabrication of steel derricks or towers.

The principal object of the invention is to provide sectional, structural truss panels which may be assembled to the derrick legs with a minimum of effort and cost.

Another object of the invention is to provide a structural tower more rigid than those heretofore erected.

Still another object is to provide a lighter structure which is capable of withstanding stresses imposed thereon.

Another and equally important object of the.

invention is to provide in a tower structure, panels which are welded at a factory into units, which panels may be shipped to the location of the derrick and subsequently bolted to the derrick legs. a

Yet another object of the invention is to provide a structural tower in which approximately fifty percent of the bolts are eliminated.

Still another object is to provide a construction in which less piece marking is required since the tower is constructed of less units.

Yet another object is to provide a derrick which may be [constructed of units which do not require bundling of individual pieces.

Yet another object is to provide a structural tower which may beassembled without loss of parts in the field, since the size of the Welded units will preclude this loss.

With the foregoing objects as paramount the invention has particular reference to its salient features of construction and arrangement of parts, which will become manifest as the descrip tion proceeds, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a view in elevation of a derrick constructed in accordance with the present invention.

Figure 2 is a perspective view of one of the welded panels.

Figure 3 is a fragmentary View showing the connection of a welded panel at the connection inwardly of the derrick structure.

derrick which are arranged in superimposed relationship. The legs I of the derrick are interconnected by panels illustrated in perspective in Figure 2.

It will be understood that the present invention comprehends the prefabricating of structural panels such as illustrated in Figure 2. These units are comprised primarily of girts 2 which are welded to major diagonals 3, said diagonals being preferably comprised of anglesections as shown, said sections being welded together. It will be understood that the present invention comprehends a structure comprised of welded truss panels, and is not limited to the particular design as herein illustrated. The panels hereinabove described are welded at the factory at the points designated by a.

As in conventional structural towers, the legs I are comprised of superimposed angle-sections, the said angle-sections being joined at alternate girts and secured by gusset plates 4. These gusset plates are secured within the angle-sections of the legs I by means of bolts 5, and the welded panels are secured to the legs through the medium of the bolts ii. The successively arranged panels are secured together by means of bolts 1.

In Figure 6 is shown a view of one of the welded panels from the edge. It will be observed that one flange of the girt 2 is vertical and the other extends outwardly and to the underside of this latter flange, the ends of the major diagonals are welded with the plane of one of its flanges flush with that of the vertical flange of the girt. The horizontal brace shown especially in Figure 2 is a continuation of the outwardly extending flange of the upper part of the major diagonals 3, the latter being extended by two short angle sections welded to the diagonals at a and forming a V- shape. These angle sections have flanges on a plane with and welded to those flanges of the diagonals which are on a plane with the vertical flanges of the girt 2. The companion flanges of the angle sections extend inwardly of the derrick structure and it is to the inclined plane surfaces of these flanges that the lower ends of the minor diagonals are welded, one flange of each minor diagonal lying flush against the vertical flange of the girt while the companion flanges extend Thus, there is no interference by the flanges of any angle member which will interfere with the assembly thereof.

Stresses induced in the girts are produced by the horizontal components of the stresses in the diagonals, and stresses in the legs are produced by the vertical components of the stresses in the diagonals. By welding the members of the panels as units, the horizontal components of the stress in the diagonal is taken care of by the welded joint. Thus two bolts are enabled to transfer the vertical component into a leg of the structure. Since the vertical component is invariably less in magnitude than the stress in the diagonal itself, the two bolts will prove ample to carry the vertical component.

Manifestly, the construction as shown and described is capable of some modification and such modification as may be construed within the scope and meaning of the appended claim is also considered to be within the spirit and intent of the invention.

What is claimed is:

A derrick construction comprising a plurality of prefabricated and individually rigid panels having welded constituents, the latter comprising girts arranged to span the legs of a derrick and to be bolted thereto, major diagonals having extensions defining a substantially V-shape, a horizontal brace formed integrally with and extending from one to the other of said major diagonals and a pair of minor diagonals connecting said major diagonals and said girt, said panels being arranged in vertical joined relationship on said legs to complete the frame of said derrick.

ARTHUR KENDRICK. 

